Dead Animal Removal in Mississippi
Private-property removal Β· Mississippi statewide Β· one number Β· passed to an independent operator if one is available.
For a dead animal on your own property. Calls reach this site's routing line, which passes them to an independent operator where one covers the area. Say what the animal is, where it is lying and how it can be reached.
Who removes a dead animal from private property in Mississippi?
Mississippi has no single answer: some cities and counties publish their own rules or routes, and the pages we reviewed for others say nothing about dead animals. None of the city and county codes and pages we reviewed describes collecting an animal from under a house, from a crawl space or from an attic. Some cities publish a route for the rest. Southaven's code provides a pickup from residences at a minimum of $25 per animal, Olive Branch's covers a dead dog or cat at the owner's request for $25, and Jackson's says dead animals are removed by special pickup on call to animal control. Others set a clock: Hattiesburg's code says a carcass must be disposed of within 12 hours of its death or discovery unless it is refrigerated or frozen. Madison County's Road Department lists dead animals among the items its debris pickup will not collect. Who picks up dead animals sets out each route with its source. Call 601-748-7970.
Start with the closest match
Animals and situations
By animal
If you know what the animal is, begin here. Each page sets out what Mississippi sources say about that animal and what to tell an operator when you call.
Deer
A deer that died in a yard, a field edge or a ditch on your land. In the CWD zone counties, check MDWFP's map before a carcass leaves the zone.
What this involves →
Raccoon
Raccoons often die in crawl spaces, attics and under decks. The State Department of Health says not to handle or touch one, alive or dead.
What this involves →
Skunk
A dead skunk brings two problems at once, the carcass and the smell. The Department of Health lists skunks among animals that can carry rabies.
What this involves →
Opossum
Opossums shelter under houses and in attics, and a dead one is usually found by smell. Mississippi classes them as fur-bearing animals.
What this involves →
Squirrel
Squirrels nest in attics and eaves and sometimes die there. Mississippi wildlife law classes them as game animals.
What this involves →
Bird
One dead bird is usually a household matter; several in one place may need reporting. State and federal rules protect most wild birds.
What this involves →By situation
Where the animal lies decides whether anyone can reach it. These pages are grouped by access, and none of them involves cutting into a finished wall, ceiling or floor.
In the yard
An animal in the open, the easiest case to reach. Some city routes for homes may cover it, so check yours first.
What this involves →
Under a house or deck
No city or county page we reviewed mentions collecting from under a structure. If there is an existing way in, a carcass under a house or deck can be removed without cutting.
What this involves →In a crawl space
A crawl space is often the hiding place, and the access door is usually the way in. Removal through this site goes through an existing opening; nothing is cut.
What this involves →In the attic
An animal on the attic floor can usually be reached from the hatch. One inside a ceiling or wall cavity is a different matter.
What this involves →Odor, no animal in sight
The smell is there but the animal is not. Where the odor is strongest usually decides whether anything can be done.
What this involves →The animal and situation pictures are stock or AI-generated illustrations, not photographs of work by Mississippi Dead Animal Removal or by any operator, and they imply nothing about who works near you. The photograph at the top of the page is an aerial view of the Mississippi State Capitol in Jackson by Carol M. Highsmith (LC-DIG-highsm-42527). Photographs in the Ben May Charitable Trust Collection of Mississippi Photographs in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
Does this match yours?
Be ready to say what the animal is, where it is lying and how it can be reached.
Start here
Three places, three different answers
Who deals with a dead animal depends on where it is lying. Work that out before you pay anyone.
On your own property
Check for a city route, then arrange it
A yard, a driveway, the space under a house or deck, a crawl space, an attic or a garage. Southaven's code provides a paid pickup from residences; Jackson's says dead animals are removed by special pickup on call to animal control, without saying whether that reaches private property. None of the city or county pages we reviewed mentions an animal under a house, in a crawl space or in an attic. If the animal can be reached without cutting into a finished wall, ceiling or floor, an independent operator may remove it if one is available; that is settled on the call. If a bat may have touched a person or a pet, the State Department of Health says it should be tested for rabies: 601-576-7725.
On a road
Ask the road authority first
For a state highway, Lafayette County's website points to MDOT at (601) 359-7001. A county road or city street belongs to that county or city: DeSoto County, for one, sends large dead animals and deer blocking roads in unincorporated areas to its Road Management office. Settle that before paying anyone.
A small animal within reach
What the agencies advise
For a single dead bird, the Board of Animal Health's bird-flu advice is to avoid bare hands, double-bag it and put it in household garbage, or bury it. Check your city first: Jackson's and Biloxi's codes bar dead animals from garbage containers. The State Department of Health says not to handle wild animals that can carry rabies, such as raccoons, skunks, foxes and bats, alive or dead. MDWFP has a carcass-transport rule for its CWD Management Zones; the MDWFP pages we reviewed do not say how it applies to a deer found dead.
By where it is lying
Who handles it depends on the place
| Where it is | Who handles it | Source and wording |
|---|---|---|
| Under a house or deck, in a crawl space or in an attic | Not described by any city or county page we reviewed | None of the city and county codes and pages we reviewed mentions collecting an animal from these places. Where the pages we reviewed describe no route, they do not say who removes it; an owner can arrange removal personally or hire someone. |
| A state highway | MDOT, according to Lafayette County's website | Lafayette County's website says MDOT handles dead animals in the roadway and lists (601) 359-7001. Olive Branch's website lists 1-866-521-MDOT (6368) for state-maintained roads. City streets and county roads belong to the city or county. |
| A residence in Southaven | The City of Southaven | City code Β§3-26 provides a dead-animal pickup from any residence within city limits, at a minimum charge of $25 per animal paid in advance. |
| A dead dog or cat at an Olive Branch home | Olive Branch animal control | City code Β§10-46: animal control picks up a dead dog or cat from a residence at the owner's request, for $25. |
| A road in unincorporated DeSoto County | DeSoto County Road Management (662-469-8025) | The county lists "Large dead animals/deer blocking roads in unincorporated areas" under Road Management. |
| Moving a deer carcass out of a CWD Management Zone | MDWFP's transport rule (Rule 2.7); how it applies to a deer found dead is not stated on the MDWFP pages we reviewed | MDWFP's rule (40 Miss. Admin. Code Part 2, Rule 2.7) makes it unlawful to transport any portion of a cervid carcass outside an MDWFP-defined CWD Management Zone. The MDWFP pages we reviewed do not say how that applies to a deer found dead on private property; ask at 1-800-BE-SMART. All of DeSoto County is in the 2026-2027 North Mississippi zone. |
Before you pay
When a public route comes first
An animal on a road belongs to whoever maintains the road. For a state highway, Lafayette County's website points to MDOT at (601) 359-7001, and Olive Branch's lists MDOT's line for state-maintained roads. A county road goes to the county; DeSoto County, for example, sends large dead animals and deer blocking roads in unincorporated areas to Road Management.
Several city codes also describe a route off the road. Southaven's provides a pickup from residences for a fee. Jackson's says dead animals are removed by special pickup on call to animal control, and Meridian's that carcasses are collected on request to the public works director; neither says whether that reaches private property. Gulfport's says small dead animals are kept in covered cans until the sanitary department collects them. Biloxi's, which does not describe a pickup, says to notify the police department between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. If your city offers a route that fits your case, use it. The locations pages set out what each covered place publishes.
If a bat may have had contact with a person or a pet, the Mississippi State Department of Health says it should be tested for rabies; for instructions, call its Office of Epidemiology at 601-576-7725.
Calls reach this site's routing line, which passes them to an independent operator where one covers the area. Whether one is available for your address is answered on the call.
Plain answers
Questions people ask first
Each answer comes from codes, rules and agency pages, with the source named under the answer on the page it links to.
Who picks up dead animals in Mississippi?
It depends on the road or property. Cities write their own routes, and none of the city or county pages we reviewed mentions an animal under a house or in a crawl space.
Full answer →What about a dead deer?
MDWFP's rule limits which parts of a deer carcass can leave a CWD Management Zone. All of DeSoto County and west Harrison County sit inside the 2026-2027 zones.
Full answer →Where does a dead animal go?
That depends on the animal and on what the local landfill or waste service will take. The Board of Animal Health's burial rule is written for livestock; it does not mention pets or wildlife.
Full answer →The smell is inside a wall. Now what?
This site does not pass on work that means cutting into a wall. The article covers what to check first, in the spaces that already have a way in.
Full answer →By area
Mississippi cities and counties
5 pages, each built from the code sections and government web pages we reviewed for that place: what it collects, what it leaves to the property owner, and whom to call about a road.
Central Mississippi
North Mississippi
Gulf Coast
Pine Belt
How public and private responsibility splits in Mississippi →
Handling a small animal yourself
Check your city's rules before the garbage can
| Who says it | What it says |
|---|---|
| Mississippi Board of Animal Health, one dead bird | Its bird-flu FAQ says not to touch the bird with bare hands, to double-bag it and put it in household garbage, or to bury it. Five or more dead wild waterfowl, shorebirds or raptors in one place should be reported. |
| Mississippi State Department of Health, bats | Do not handle live bats or bats that seem to be dead. A bat that may have touched a person or a pet should be tested for rabies: call 601-576-7725. |
| Mississippi State Department of Health, other wild animals | Do not handle or touch live or dead wild animals that can carry rabies, such as raccoons, skunks, foxes and coyotes. |
| Jackson city code, Β§106-186 | Dead animals may not be put in garbage containers for regular collection. |
| Biloxi city code, Β§9-1-11 | Dead animals may not go in garbage containers; notify the police department between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. |
| Madison County garbage contractor | Lists "Dead Animals over 10lbs" among items it will not accept. |
Common questions
What does this site do?
It is an advertising and referral service. Calls reach this site's routing line and forms come to the site; either may be passed to an independent operator if one is available. The site itself does not handle or move any animal, and whether an operator serves your address is settled on the call.
Who removes a dead animal on a state highway?
Lafayette County's website says the Mississippi Department of Transportation handles dead animals in the roadway and gives (601) 359-7001; Olive Branch's website lists 1-866-521-MDOT (6368) for state-maintained roads. City streets and county roads belong to the city or county.
Will my city pick up a dead animal?
Some city codes set out a route. Southaven's offers a pickup from residences at a minimum charge of $25 per animal, paid in advance; Jackson's sends dead animals to animal control by special pickup on call; Hattiesburg's sanitation department removes them from the rights-of-way of city roads. The location pages give each city's wording.
What does removal cost?
Independent operators set their own prices, so the price is agreed on the call. This site publishes no removal prices. Where a government charges a fee, it appears here only as the government's own code states it.
Can an operator reach an animal under the house or in the attic?
An operator can remove a carcass that can be reached through an existing opening, such as a crawl-space hatch, an attic access or the open side of a deck, without cutting finished walls, ceilings or floors.
What if there is a smell in a wall and no animal in sight?
An odour from inside a sealed wall is covered on this site as information only. How long a smell lasts depends on the animal's size, temperature, humidity, airflow and location. This site's article on a dead animal smell in a wall explains what can and cannot be reached.
What about a dead deer?
MDWFP's rule makes it unlawful to transport any portion of a cervid (deer) carcass outside a CWD Management Zone (40 Miss. Admin. Code Part 2, Rule 2.7). The MDWFP pages we reviewed do not say how that applies to a deer found dead on private property; in a zone county, ask MDWFP at 1-800-BE-SMART before a carcass leaves the zone. For 2026-2027 the zones are North Mississippi, Issaquena and Harrison; the deer guide on this site lists the counties MDWFP names.
Is it safe to pick up a dead animal myself?
The Mississippi State Department of Health advises against handling or touching live or dead wild animals that can carry rabies, such as raccoons, bats, skunks, foxes and coyotes. If someone may have been exposed, call its Office of Epidemiology at 601-576-7725.
On your own land, with no public route?
Call and say what the animal is and where. Roads go to the agency that maintains them.